Blockchain Company Valereum Buys Majority of Gibraltar Stock Exchange, Pending Regulator OK

Valereum, a blockchain firm, has bought 90% of the Gibraltar Stock Exchange (GSX) group, as it tries to build a fully-regulated, integrated fiat and digital exchange, a report says.

The acquisition hasn’t yet been approved. It still has to get the final OK from the Gibraltar Financial Services Commission (GFSC), which regulates such activity there.

In October, Valereum said it was on track to buy 80% of GSX. But that number has been raised now.

Valereum said that once the acquisition is approved, it wants to “establish the GSX as one of the world’s first fully-regulated, integrated fiat and digital exchanges.”

“This simplifying of the acquisition structure is important for all parties and will lead to faster completion of the transaction,” Valereum Chairman Richard Poulden said, per the report.

The company added that the acquisition will give listed instruments on the GSX a way to access crypto capital “not available anywhere else.” Valereum also said it would give crypto holders a “direct, verifiable” holding in fiat.

The GSX has been used by financial firms to list blockchain-based securities on the platform, which is called GSX Global Market.

In addition, GSX is also in possession of regulatory permissions from GFSC, which can cover the use of blockchain and distributed ledger technology.

PYMNTS wrote that, in other crypto acquisition news, Mercado Libre has bought shares in 2TM Group, which is the parent of MercadoBitcoin.com.

See also: Mercado Libre Buys Shares in Parent of Mercado Bitcoin, Paxos

The move will help it boost its commitment in crypto asset development.

The company has also invested in blockchain infrastructure company Paxos, which also powers the Mercado Pago crypto in Brazil.

This will help it bolster the regional ecosystem and offer more relevant products to Latin American entrepreneurs and users.

The company has been looking into digital assets and blockchain in various places. The partnership, according to Andre Chaves, senior vice president of strategy and corporate development for Mercado Libre, is the result of looking into “innovations and opportunities” in the digital asset market.